The budget that legislators approved last week and will send to the governor for his signature into law or veto would provide about $425,000 in one-time additional state funding to the Wrangell school district for the 2023-2024 classroom year. That...

Alaska lawmakers reached a compromise on the state budget and adjourned after a one-day special session last week, approving a $1,300 Permanent Fund dividend for this fall with the possibility of a second, smaller payment next year if oil revenues...

Trident Seafoods is on schedule with preparation work to reopen its processing plant on the Wrangell waterfront after a three-year closure. “We expect to start handling fish the week of July 10,” focusing on chum and pink salmon, Southeast...

The Alaska Legislature is no different than a typical American household – torn between spending every last dollar from their paycheck on immediate wants or saving some for the inevitable future needs. When the wants win out, money often is short...

Alaska lawmakers have been spending the final days of the 121-day legislative session disagreeing over the amount of this fall’s Permanent Fund dividend. As of Monday afternoon, the House and Senate appeared unable to agree on state spending for th...

Elected officials, ballot initiative supporters and opponents, campaign managers and anyone else who writes, texts or tweets outlandish claims and promises should be required to stay after the election and write on the blackboard (remember those)...

The first cruise ship of the season is scheduled to tie up in Wrangell on Thursday, and borough crews have been working to get new restrooms ready for visitors — and locals — who need another option while walking around downtown. The borough has...

The great tax debate in Alaska sounds similar to the age-old question of whether it is less painful to yank off the bandage quickly or peel it off slowly and gently. I have found that it just doesn’t matter all that much how I pull off the bandage....

State Sen. Click Bishop remembers his first paycheck as a teenager in Fairbanks in the early 1970s. His boss explained the $10 deduction for the state’s so-called school head tax. “That pays for your education,” the boss told his young...

An Anchorage legislator has added another idea to the growing list of tax proposals before lawmakers who are struggling to cover the state’s revenue needs. Rep. Zack Fields has proposed a personal income tax limited to no more than the amount of...

Legislation to impose a state tax on e-cigarettes and vaping devices appears headed to next year’s legislative work list. Lawmakers raised multiple questions about the bills at two committee hearings last week, and the Legislature faces a May 17...

Most Alaska state budget watchers follow oil prices, fully realizing that they can bounce around like a small plane on a windy day, creating that same stomach-churning queasiness when they drop. The estimated difference between Alaska North Slope cru...

Legislative leaders focused on the Permanent Fund dividend and taxes as they described the budget choices facing lawmakers trying to find a combination that will win enough political support to balance state spending. “The dividend has been the...

Gov. Mike Dunleavy told legislators in a pair of closed-door meetings last week that he will introduce a state sales tax as a component of a budget-balancing, long-term fiscal plan. But with just three weeks left in the legislative session, with no...

Alaska is 30 years into state budget deficits, borrowing billions from savings to pay the bills. Gov. Mike Dunleavy is five years into the job, still pledging mega Permanent Fund dividends even if the money isn’t there. Three months ago, Dunleavy i...

Alaskans who need cash quickly can go to a payday lender for a short-term loan of up to $500, handing over a check or access to their bank account to cover the entire loan repayment just as soon as they get paid at work or their pension arrives. But...

Rather than requiring a specific course in financial literacy for high school graduation, lawmakers have amended the legislation so that school districts could incorporate the same information into one or more classes as long as the material is...

Legislation that could boost state funding to assist more low-income Alaskans needing help with civil law issues has advanced through its second state Senate committee and is waiting for a vote by the full chamber. The measure would more than double...

The state should change its tax code to increase corporate income tax collections from out-of-state businesses that sell goods or services to Alaskans, particularly digitized services, according to a legislator promoting the revisions. “The world...

Wrangell’s annual community cleanup is planned for April 29, with free lunch, free trash bags, free disposable gloves, and cash prizes for volunteer picker-uppers. And while organizers hope the incentives will get people to turn out, the real...

When I was a kid, I suppose my role models were mostly professional athletes. Sports was everything (no offense to school or my parents or Boy Scouts leader). Though I never was very good at any of them, particularly sports or school or being an...

The Wrangell School District would receive an additional $425,000 in one-year state money under a budget headed toward approval in the Alaska House, falling short of a permanent increase in the education funding formula sought by school districts...

The state has embarked on a mandatory income eligibility review of about 150,000 households receiving Medicaid benefits — covering as many as 260,000 people, more than one in three Alaskans. Nearly 500 Wrangell households could be in that stack....

There is no wisdom in the state House majority’s decision to put Permanent Fund dividends ahead of the public education budget. Paying for larger PFDs before schools is not the way to build a better state, to keep families from leaving, to entice...